Historically, the plant world has been the most important source of medicinal agents for the treatment of human and animal disease, and for use as preventative agents in maintaining good health. However, for at least the last 150 years, Western medicine has been dominated by synthetic chemical agents.
It is now being increasingly recognized, however, that many plants and plant extracts are highly effective agents for the prevention and treatment of disease. A single plant can possess a large number of pharmaceutically active agents, and extracts obtained therefrom can exert their activities on a variety of physiologic processes, increasing the range of the desired therapeutic effect.
As one example, U.S. Publication No. 2015/0050373 describes use of plants from the Calophyllum genus to treat metabolic disorders. Calophyllum is a flowering plant genus of around 180-200 species of tropical evergreen trees. The Calophyllum genus includes four subcategories: Calophyllum brasiliense, Calophyllum caledonicum, Calophyllum inophyllum and Calophyllum soulattri. Calophyllum inophyllum, is a medium to large sized evergreen tree that averages 25-65 feet in height. Different medicinal uses of this plant have been reported in the literature, for example, decoction of the bark of this plant treats internal hemorrhages. The oil extracted from Calophyllum inophyllum seeds is used to treat rheumatoid arthritis or joint disorders; itching; eczema; pimples appearing on head; eye diseases; and kidney failure.
U.S. Publication No. 2014/0193345 describes use of the plants Uncaria tomentosa, Thymus vulgaris, Matricaria recutita, Salix alba, Calendula officinalis, Usnea barbata, Ligusticum porterii-osha, Gaultheria procumbens, Camellia sinensis, Vaccinium myrtillus, Melissa officinalis, Allium sativum, Camellia sinensis and Krameria triandra to treat mucosal lesions.
U.S. Publication No. 2010/0068297 describes use of the plants Punica granatum, Viburnum plicatum, Camellia sinensis, and Acer spp. as antimicrobials.
Numerous medical uses have also been identified for the cannabis plant. For example, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, also referred to as Dronabinol), an extract of the cannabis plant has been formulated in sesame oil for oral delivery. THC exhibits complex effects on the central nervous system (CNS), including central sympathomimetic activity. THC has been shown to have a marked appetite stimulant effect and has been used in the treatment of AIDS-related anorexia. THC demonstrates effects on appetite, mood, cognition, memory and perception. Furthermore, the drug has anti-emetic properties and is used to control nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy. These effects appear to be dose related.
THC's efficacy in pain treatment has been described in Pharm. J. 259, 104, 1997 and in Pharm. Sci. 3, 546, 1997. Nabilone, a synthetic cannabinoid has also been reported to be an anti-emetic and anxiolytic, and also useful for treating pain of various etiologies such as multiple sclerosis (MS), peripheral neuropathy and spinal injuries (Lancet, 1995, 345, 579, Pharm. J. 259, 104, 1997; Baker & Pryce, Expert Opin Investig Drugs. 2003 April; 12(4):561-7)). THC has also been reported to be useful in the treatment of AIDS (J. Pain. Symptom Manage. 1995, 10, 89-97) when given orally.
Another cannabinoid with well-documented health benefits is cannabidiol (CBD). In contrast to THC, CBD does not exert psychoactive effects. CBD is reported to have antidepressant (Zanelati T, et al. Journal of Pharmacology. 2010. 159(1):122-8;), anti-anxiety (Resstel B M, et al. Br J Pharmacol. 2009. 156(1):181-188), anti-inflammatory (Vuolo F, et al. Mediators of Inflammation. 2015. 538670), and neuroprotective effects (Campos A C, et al. Pharmacol Res. 2016. 112:119-127).
Additional uses for the cannabis plant include treatment of addiction (De Vries, et al., Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2003 July; 168(1-2):164-9); ADHD (O'Connell and Ché, Harm Reduction Journal. 2007; 4:16); alcoholism (Basavarajappa & Hungund, Alcohol. 2005 January-February; 40(1):15-24); Alzheimer's disease (Eubanks et al., Mol Pharm. 2006 November-December; 3(6):773-7); amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) (Raman et al., Amyotroph Lateral Scler Other Motor Neuron Disord. 2004 March; 5(1):33-9); anxiety (The British Journal of Psychiatry February 2001, 178 (2) 107-115); asthma (Tashkin et al., American Review of Respiratory Disease, 1975; 112, 377); auto-immune diseases (Lyman et al., J Neuroimmunol. 1989 June; 23(1):73-81); bacterial infections (Nissen et al., Fitoterapia. 2010 July; 81(5):413-9); bone loss (Bab et al., Ann Med. 2009; 41(8):560-7); brain injury/stroke (Shohami et al., Br J Pharmacol. 2011 August; 163(7):1402-10); cancer (Guindon & Hohmann, Br J Pharmacol. 2011 August; 163(7):1447-63); heart disease (Walsh et al., Br J Pharmacol. 2010 July; 160(5):1234-42); Huntington's disease (Lastres-Becker et al., J Neurochem. 2003 March; 84(5):1097-109); inflammation (AAPS J. 2009 March; 11(1): 109-119); Parkinson's disease (Sieradzan et al., Neurology. 2001 Dec. 11; 57(11):2108-11); and psoriasis (Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2009 August; 30(8): 411-420).
Additional documented uses for the cannabis plant include treating acquired hypothyroidism, acute gastritis, agoraphobia, ankyloses, arthritis, Asperger's syndrome, atherosclerosis, autism, bipolar disorder, blood disorders, cachexia, carpal tunnel syndrome, cerebral palsy, cervical disk disease, cervicobrachial syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, chronic pain, cluster headache, conjunctivitis, Crohn's disease, cystic fibrosis, depression, dermatitis, diabetes, dystonia, eating disorders, eczema, epilepsy, fever, fibromyalgia, flu, fungal infection, gastrointestinal disorders, glaucoma, glioma, Grave's disease, hepatitis, herpes, hypertension, impotence, incontinence, infant mortality, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), insomnia, liver fibrosis, mad cow disease, menopause, migraine headaches, motion sickness, MRSA, muscular dystrophy, nail patella syndrome, neuroinflammation, nicotine addiction, obesity, obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), pancreatitis, panic disorder, periodontal disease, phantom limb pain, poison ivy allergy, premenstrual syndrome (PMS), proximal myotonic myopathy, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), Raynaud's disease, restless leg syndrome, schizophrenia, scleroderma, septic shock, shingles herpes zoster), sickle cell disease, seizures, sleep apnea, sleep disorders, stress, stuttering, temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ), tension headaches, tinnitus, Tourette's syndrome, traumatic memories, wasting syndrome, and withdrawal.
Despite the numerous benefits associated with plant-based compounds and nutritional supplements, when administered in oral form, their onset of action can be slow, which can detract from their usefulness in some instances. For example, after oral administration, THC has an onset of action of fifteen minutes at the very earliest to 1.5 hours and a peak effect at 2-4 hours. The duration of action for psychoactive effects is 4-6 hours, but the appetite stimulant effect may continue for 24 hours or longer after administration. THC is almost completely absorbed (90-95%) after single oral doses. However, due to a combined effect of first pass hepatic metabolism and poor aqueous solubility (THC water solubility is 2.8 mg/L), only 10-20% of the administered dose reaches the systemic circulation. Therefore, oral consumption of cannabis is characterized by low bioavailability of cannabinoids, and slow onset of action. Thus, as this one example provides, there is room for improvement in the oral administration of plant-based compounds and nutritional supplements.